“The third word used in the New Testament for the Christian preacher is the word ‘witness’ . . . Christian preachers are privileged to testify to and for Jesus Christ, defending Him, commending Him, bringing before the court evidence which they must hear and consider before they return their verdict” (John Stott, The Preacher’s Portrait, …
A Grounded Appeal
“First, we must never issue an appeal without first making the proclamation. Much harm has been done to the souls of men, and much dishonour brought to the name of Christ, through neglect of this simple rule. Evangelistic preaching has too often consisted of a prolonged appeal for decision when the congregation has been given …
What We Declare
“Thus the apostle Paul sets forth what we have called the proclamation, the announcement of what God has done for our reconciliation to Himself. He has refused to impute our sins to us. He has made Christ to be sin for us. This is the ‘gospel’ of which we are heralds. It is the proclamation …
Proclamation and Appeal
“Fundamentally, [the apostolic kerygma] consisted of only two parts, which we may perhaps call ‘proclamation’ and ‘appeal'” (John Stott, The Preacher’s Portrait, p. 40).
Through His Ministers
Paul “then adds, ‘And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near’ (Eph. 2:15, 17). This preaching of peace by Jesus Christ (cf. Acts 10:36), according to the context, took place after His death. It can scarcely refer to His teaching during the forty days …
The Larder
“The faithful steward will make himself familiar with all the contents of his larder. The larder of Holy Scripture is so extensive, that even a life-time’s arduous study will not fully disclose either its riches or its variety . . . .The systematic preaching of the Word is impossible without the systematic study of it …
The One Who Trembles to Hear Need Not Tremble in Declaring
“Indeed, I am persuaded that the more the preacher has ‘trembled’ at God’s Word himself (e.g. Ezra 9:4,10:3; Is. 66:2,5), and felt its authority upon his conscience and in his life, the more he will be able to preach it with authority to others . . . True preaching is never stale or dull or …
Cut the Road Straight
“This is surely what Paul meant when he told Timothy to be ‘a workman who has not need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth’ (2 Tim. 2:15). The verb, orthotomounta, means literally ‘cutting straight’. It was employed of road making and is, for instance, used in the LXX of Proverbs 3:6: ‘He …
Authority to Apportion
“The steward has no say in determining what goes into the larder; it is stocked for him by the householder. But it is his responsibility to decide what comes out of it, and when, and in what measure. This is another aspect of the steward’s faithfulness, this time not to the householder or the goods, …
No Problem Texts
“One way to escape extremes of neglect and overemphasis is to work steadily through books of the Bible or at least whole chapters, expounding everything, shirking nothing” (John Stott, A Preacher’s Portrait, p. 26).